Philippines cautions all against entertaining fake credit firms
The scam involves promising the client a share of a large sum of money, in return for a small upfront payment, which the fraudster requires in order to obtain the large sum
The Philippines’ Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) cautions everyone against credit companies - lending and financing entities which demand advance fees for desired loans.
Sec-enforcementandinvestorprotectiondepartment(eipd)directoraty.filbertcatalinofloresiiialso advisesvictimsofsuchfraudalongsideotheralleged illegal monetary transactions to report complaints over the epd@sec.gov.ph of the EIPD and through flcd_complaints@sec.gov.ph of the Sec-financing and Lending Companies Division (Finlend).
Flores said: “Persons who are engaged in these kinds of activities are liable for violation of Article 315 Swindling (Estafa) of the Revised Penal Code of the Philippines. The public is advised not to transact with any financing and lending company that requires them to pay out cash in exchange for the approval or release of their loans.”
Gulf Today contacted the SEC-EIPD chief ater receiving full details of how an overseas Filipino worker-single mother in Dubai, became a victim of the Cebu Province-based “lending company, Filipina Credit and Loans Inc. The main male culprit informed her that she would only be able to get the loan if she transmits
Php30,000 (Dhs1,977) as “a guarantee” for her financial capability to re-pay every month.
The victim initially sought for possible sources of loans in the Philippines by way of the “Facebook Messenger” to secure her child’s enrollment and school needs, and house rent, among other expenditures. She was directed to the “specific website htps://fastloan.credit. One of the two lady “accomplices” she had identified alongside the alleged main male culprit, consequently appeared in the “group chat.” This accomplice claimed that she was granted the loan ater complying with the advance fee requirement.
The victim was subsequently “blocked from the telegram app with the link provided having become “invalid” ater the main male culprit “acknowledged” the receipt of the Php30,000.
The second deception case happened before September 2023. A Filipino in Sharjah remitted approximately Dhs13,000 (Php200,000) through the “Gokongwei Fintech Gotyme Bank.” He later on discovered that the person he was conversing with over Facebook Messenger and who asked him to forward that certain amount to that particular bank was not his brother.
He was scammed by the person who hacked his brother’s Facebook account. He would like to know how a bogus could transpire since he forwarded the Dhs13,000toalegitimatefinancialinstitution,using “my brother’s name and the given account number. Logical that the account name in that bank and my brother’s name are mismatched. So, even with the givenaccountnumberbutadifferentaccountname, somebody could withdraw money from that bank.”
Sec-finlend assistant director Kenneth Joy Quimio said: “As of December 31, 2023, a total of 886 financing companies and 3,795 lending companies have been registered with the SEC. We confirm the registration and licensing of Filipina Credit and Loan Inc. as a lending company.”
The public has been forewarned through advisories: “An advance fee scam is a form of fraud and among the most common types of confidence trick. The scam typically involves promising the victim a significantshareofalargesumofmoney,inreturnfor asmallupfrontpayment,whichthefraudsterrequires in order to obtain the large sum. If a victim makes the payment, the fraudster either invents a series of further fees for the victim or simply disappears.”
It is possible for the scammed to retrieve the money, “provided that the culprit is identified.”
“Revocation or suspension shall be imposed, at the SEC’S discretion ater three accumulated violations of the company,” added Quimio.
One “successful” complaint was against the Populus Lending Corporation which violated the SEC “Memorandum on the Prohibition on Unfair Debt Collection Practices” until 2023. The Seccorporate Governance and Finance Department in tandem with the Philippine National Policeanti-cybercrime Group through “digital forensic examination” had uncovered that the company operated 13, not four online lending applications. Nineformalcomplaintsand355informalcomplaints from clients had revealed that company personnel threatened as well as executed obscene language, false representations, and used information against individuals with malicious intent to coerce them.
Quimio said: “The erring company will be revoked only ater the issuance of an Order, Notice of Deficiency, Show Cause Leters, Assessment Leters or in case of the Company’s request for monitoring clearance, the issuance of the monitoring sheet indicating the penalties.”